Elastic fabric and method of manufacture thereof



P. E. F. CLAY 2,668,565

ELASTIC FABRIC AND METHOD OF MANUFACTURE THEREOF Feb. 9, 1954 Filed Oct. 11, 1949 I nventor HI/L/P [RHEsT'flM NK CLA y Mm \SQJ/KU/TM,

A Home y Patented Feb. 9, 1954 ELASTIC FABRIC AND METHOD OF MANUFACTURE THEREOF Philip Ernest Frank Clay, Radcliffe-on-Trent, England Application October 11, 1949, Serial No. 120,685

Claims priority, application Great Britain January 31, 1949 7 Claims.

This invention relates to a new or improved elastic fabric; the expression elastic fabric as used herein means and includes fabric incorporating elastic (india rubber) thread, or thread having similar properties in so far as concerns extensibility.

It is known to make fabric incorporating elastic (india rubber) thread but heretofore it has been customary to introduce the elastic and inelastic threads under tension (the elastic threads consequently being stretched); as the fabric is made the elastic threads relax so that the ultimate width of the fabric is reduced and the inelastic threads necessarily kink; these are definite disadvantages.

An object of this invention is to overcome these disadvantages and to enable new or improved effects to be obtained in elastic fabrics.

The invention accordingly provides a method of making a textile thread intended primarily for incorporating in elastic fabric for the attainment of the aforesaid object, comprising wrapping at least one thread of inextensible textile material around a core which is removable as by chemical means. A plurality of said inextensible threads may be wrapped round the core successively in opposite senses and, for example, two inextensible threads may be wound helically with a long pitch and one in each opposite sense round the core.

The invention further provides a novel textile thread intended primarily for incorporation in elastic fabric, made by the method aforesaid so as to comprise one thread of inextensible textile material wrapped round a core, or a plurality of threads of inextensible textile material wrapped round a core in opposite senses, the core being removable as by chemical means after incorporation in an elastic fabric.

From another aspect the invention provides a method of making an elastic fabric which is characterised by including in the fabric elastic predetermined condition of stretch, as disclosed,

for example, in the specification of my co-pending patent application Serial No. 120,684 which has issued as Patent No. 2,587,117, dated February 26, 1952. Thus one method of making an elastic fabric including the incorporation therein of elastic thread as disclosed in my said copending application may comprise initially stretching the elastic thread, applying thereto at least one helical wrapping of textile thread (to maintain the initial stretch) and superimposing on said helical wrapping a further wrapping of an inextensible thread to inhibit further stretch (i. e. said superimposed wrappings predetermining the initial stretch respectively against relaxation and further stretch) said further wrapping being removable as by chemical means, incorporating in the fabric, in parallel relationship, said elastic thread and textile thread comprising at least one thread of inextensible textile material wrapped round a core which is removable as by chemical means, and treating the fabric to remove said further wrapping of the elastic thread and said core.

It is desirable to employ in the practice of a method of making elastic fabric as last stated, an elastic thread and a non-elastic textile thread of which respectively the further, stretch-inhibiting wrapping and the core are removable as by the same chemical means, preferably a solvent, which is harmless to the elastic thread and its stretchretaining wrapping and also to the inextensible components in the non-elastic thread. For convenience of removal by means of solvent, a soluble stretch-inhibiting wrapping of the elastic thread and the core of the non-elastic thread may be made of alginate yarn.

The invention further extends to an elastic fabric, made by the method above stated, includ ing elastic and non-elastic threads laid side by side, and having the advantage that the fabric is extensible in the longitudinal direction of said threads and then contractile to its initial dimension Without Duckering as will be apparent from the following more detailed description.

In order that the foregoing and other objects and features of the invention may be more fully understood, certain embodiments of non-elastic threads and of fabrics made with the aid of such non-elastic threads in association with elastic threads, will be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings wherein;

Figure 1 is a diagrammatic elevation or part of one embodiment of a non-elastic thread according to the invention, prepared for incorporation in an elastic fabric,

Figure 2 is a like view of a modified embodiment of non-elastic thread,

Figure 3 is a like view of a composits elastic thread,

Figureve is eassimilar rviewr-ofanotherskindsof elastic i-threa'd,

Figure is a diagrammatic plan view of one embodiment of elastic fabric after weaving and prior to chemical treatment, according to the invention.

Figure 6 is a like view of a variant df the elastic fabric,

Figure 7 is a like view of a portion of the elastic fabric shown in Figure 5 after said chemical treatment, and unstretizhed;and

Figure 8 is a like view to .Eigure 7,;showing the fabric stretched.

In the making of a non-elastic thread as shown in Figure l, which may be effected on any convenient type of machine such, for example,

the type-disclosed:sineBritishipatentsspecificaztion;No.. 288,121, a destructiblemitrremovable core I LWhiChi may, for zexamplei bezan alginateithread :or yarn,-is drawni'from 'asuitable supp1y,.-and3an inex-tensible thread 2131112116 :or scotton 01 23113! I other idesiredimaterialiis wrapped? helicaillygan'd 'apreferablyrwitli"a:relativelyi1ong:pitch as shown, iaroundctheicore I lizAiternativelyea :pluralityrof wrappings mayzbezapplierlitoithe::core iii-desired, successive wrappingstbeing preferably appliedin :opposite senses. 'For.- :exa-mp1e,= ass-shown in :Figure .2 ia-rcore I; maytbe wrappedd'irst in clookwise direction :with :an Zinextensible thread 2a and then in anti+clockwise direction with a superlimposed' inextensible'ithread zb.

:For incorporationii in elastic abr-ics' conj ointly W-ith inon-elastic threads as sh'own either E-Figure leorfiigurfi; anelastic threaid -may con- :veniently -be :of tl-ie type disclosed in *United States specification- N0. 232205213 -and as athown in Figure 3 of -'drawin'g herein, compris'ing an :elasti-c f (in'dia rubber) thread ii I laid in unstretched condition beside an inelastic thread i, the two =-threads 3 and 4 being wound with success'ivemrappings fiand fi, appl-ied iir opposite senses, so as to combine the elastic and "inexztensible '--threads 3 and 4 -together and ensure that during-the produetion -of a' -fabi ic inhfding sueh' threads the elastic thread 3 is maintained in a completely relaxed or unstretche'cl condi- --'tion. The associated inelastic threat]. '4 has-6f course-to lie-removedsubsequentlyfrorrfthecompleted fabric "to "enable '-the l'atter 'to "stret'ch as required.

Analterna'tive elastic thread for-=incorporation in elastic fabricsas afiorded by-the*present in- =vention is shown *in Figure 4;=an'd consists of elastic thread which is-maintained"always ina predetermined con ditio'n of stretch, while 'being inhibited during incorporation in the fabric "from "furtherstretch; isuchthread beingxme of the objects "of my'iaforesaid"comerfdingapplication. In such. elastic .thread a core of "india rubber or'other elastid'lis' initially stretched and wound with atleastpneclosely;pitched"wrapping 8 Tdf inextensible cotton or other textileithread which servesto"maintaimthe'initial 's'tretchjarfd thereafter" is wound with at least "one'iwrapping, or, prferalblyas's'hcwn with. two wrappingSLhavinga'llong' lhelical ,pitch, of a thread =material which is removable by chemical means, .suchsas 8. It will be appreciated that in the manufacture of an elastic fabric incorporating jointly non-elastic thread as shown, for example, in

either Figure l or Figure 2 and an elastic thread eas shownforexample inveitheniEigureB or Figure "l l it iszdesira'blesto employithreadsswhereof the removable core i, in the one case, and the re- ;movable stretch-inhibiting thread 4, or alternatively threads 9 and III, in the other case, are r removable-"by the same chemical means, which "likewise'isharmless to or has no deleterious effect onatheiremainir g threads, namely the thread 22 or threads 2a and 2b of the non-elastic com- ,ponent and the elastic core 3 or I and the wrapping5, 6 or? dfthe elastic component.

i Rrefer-ably-.chemically removable elements are ssohible in the same selective solvent.

Ajabric incorporating non-elastic and elastic threads as aforesaid may be produced according to the method of the present invention on any si'i'itable machines such as weaving rl'ooms, khit- -ting' machines, or laee mac'hines, and lthere may be any desired relationship bet-Ween the elastic and -'inelastic--tlireads. By way of -exa'mp-lefl if a "fabric -'produced according =-to 'the methodvofme present invention there is shown in Fi'gur-e 5 a woven fabric producedon a loom \v-here-i-n ai-ternate "picks or' 'wft threads- I= I are constituted by elastic threadsass'hown iii-Figure and theother "picksor '\veft threat-ch; i2 are eonstitdte'd by non- 'el-astic-threaids as shown in Figure 2. in Figure5 'warpthrearls +3 areshown ae-ordinaryinextensi- "ble; non-elastic threads but ism-11 Ice-appreciated that 4 such warpthreads may if"de'sired-censist or any kind of elastic thread or mixtures oi elastic "an d non elastic '-'threads, 'forexample, similar to -the* weft threads I I and I2 -'as-"show n.

Figure '6shows'-aportionofa 'like "woverrfabi'ic inwhich, however; theel-astic-threads" II arfdrionelastic threads 1-2 "are iaid in parallel relationship in groups "each "comprising two threads *of the samekind.

It will be*evidentfromeonsideration di Figures 5arrd"6*that,'in"ti're courseofweaving; "of'the'elasticthreads "H is inhibited by there ternal *Wrappings 9 and 'ifi,wi1iie' the'tensionof 'the *irrem'ovablecompon'ents *2?) ":df theironsela'sticthrea'ds I Eis controlled bythe presencefo'f the inextensible. but -subsequently removabie,

cores I.

"After a fabricsuch 'as shown inF-igureis .o'rFig- 'urejdhas'heen'made it is'subiectedto a chemical "process toremovertheidestructible components "I .rjfthe non=lasticthrea isandf9, f6 'O'f'theelastic fthreads; :or "alternatively of the 'inlasticicorel ofra-ithreaid'such*asShownin"Figure3 shodl'dithe *latterhavabee'n empl yed instead ofanlastic thread such as "shown in-Figure 4. The .fahi'sic may for example, be immersed in aisuitableibath "containing a suitable chemical and the :said cheinical will destroy the removablejhreadslbiit have no e'iiect onlthe. remainingthreads; evidently such chemical maylhe -;of.,a suitable selective solvent.

-As a resiilt of suchtreatment a'fabric ionexample, as .slziovvnin- Figure 5 on completion of weaving, lis'lnodified Lto a -conditioneastshownsin Eigure7'7. .By slirtueof the-initialacoriditioneof relaxation -of' theaelasticr thread ztwhen iaskindof .elasticethread such as sshoiv-nl in Figure 3:-\is t-employed) =1 er= oiamaintained; predeterminedastretch rofs the-:elastic-.thread :when anselastic threadsdf iaekind suchwas shown inrFigure'i'ziscemployead m spacing-between adjaeehtmzaizp threads shown in iigureflfxmaintainedrto .b igquaglit eth'e spacing as determined in the loom and as shown in Figures 5 and 6, so that the fabric in its treated condition does not pucker or wrinkle. Further by virtue of the use of non-elastic threads according to the present invention, the residual inextensible components of these threads are greater in length in each pick or weft than the Width of the fabric, or more particularly are greater in length between adjacent warps I3 than the normal unextended distance between said warps, as shown in Figure 7; that is to say, the residual threads 2a, 2b lie in curved disposition between the warps so as to avoid any appearance of puckering of the fabric and yet on the application of tension in the lengthwise direction of such threads the fabric is enabled to stretch up to a limit imposed by the length under tension of the threads 2a, 2b, as shown in Figure 8. When stretched to the degree shown in Figure 8, the fabric is of course under tension of the elastic threads H and the degree of tension is determined by whether these threads H are initially (i. e. in the disposition shown in Figure 7) either unstretched or possessed of a maintained condition of stretch; in the latter case, of course, the contractile force of the stretched fabric is considerably greater than in the former case as is explained in detail in my aforesaid co-pending application.

Evidently by virtue of the improved non-elastic threads afforded by the present invention, and the method of incorporating such threads in elastic fabrics, new or improved effects can be produced in such fabrics.

I claim:

1. A method of making an elastic fabric ineluding incorporating in the fabric, in parallel relationship, elastic threads which each include at least one stretch-retaining close wrapping and at least one soluble element serving to inhibit further stretch, and textile threads which each comprise at least one thread of inextensible textile material wrapped round a core soluble in the same solvent as said elements, and treating the fabric with solvent to dissolve the cores of the textile threads and the soluble elements of the elastic threads.

2. A method of making an elastic fabric comprising producing composite textile threads by wrapping at least one thread of inextensible textile material round a chemically removable core, producing composite elastic threads by laying an elastic yarn beside a chemically removable inelastic stretch-inhibiting yarn and applping at least one close wrapping of textile thread around said yarns, incorporating said composite textile threads in the fabric in parallel relationship with said composite elastic threads, and treating the fabric to remove the cores of the textile threads and the stretch-inhibiting yarns of the elastic threads.

3. A method of making an elastic fabric comprising producing composite textile threads by wrapping at least one thread of inextensible textile material round a chemically removable core, producing composite elastic threads by stretching an elastic yarn, applying to said yarn at least one close pitched textile wrapping for retaining it in stretched condition, and applying to said wrapped yarn a further wrapping of chemically removable inelastic yarn to inhibit further stretch, incorporating said composite textile threads in the fabric in parallel relationship with said composite elastic threads, and treating the fabric to remove the cores of the textile threads and the stretch-inhibiting yarns of the elastic threads.

4. A method of making an elastic fabric comprising producing composite textile threads by wrapping at least one thread of inextensible textile material round a soluble core, producing composite elastic threads by laying an elastic yarn beside an inelastic stretch-inhibiting yarn soluble in the same solvent as said core and applying at least one close wrapping of textile thread around said yarns, incorporating said composite textile threads in the fabric in parallel relationship with said composite elastic threads, and treating the fabric with solvent to dissolve the cores of the textile threads and the stretchinhibiting yarns of the elastic threads.

5. A method of making an elastic fabric comprising producing composite textile threads by Wrapping at least one thread of inextensible textile material round a soluble core producing composite elastic threads by stretching an elastic yarn, applying to said. yarn at least one close pitched textile wrapping for retaining it in stretched condition, and applying to said wrapped yarn to inhibit further stretch a further Wrap- .ping of inelastic yarn soluble in the same solvent as sad core, incorporating said composite textile threads in the fabric in parallel relationship with said composite elastic threads, and treating the fabric with solvent to dissolve the cores of the textile threads and the stretch-inhibiting yarns of the elastic threads.

6. An elastic fabric made by the above method of claim 1, including in parallel relationship unstretched elastic threads and relaxed inelastic threads.

7. An elastic fabric made by the method of claim 1, including, in parallel relationship, elastic threads maintained in partly stretched condition and free for further stretch, and relaxed inelastic threads.

PHILIP ERNEST FRANK CLAY.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 362,318 Scheppers et al May 3, 1887 1,679,822 Hall Aug. 7, 1928 2,052,875 Gammons Sept. 1, 1936 2,061,021 Chittenden et al. Nov. 17, 1936 2,128,764 Smith Aug. 30, 1938 2,210,884 Chittenden et a1. Aug. 13, 1940 2,231,808 Isaac Feb. 11, 1941 2,396,483 Alderfer Mar. 12, 1946 2,418,187 Moore Apr. 1, 1947 2,427,334 Alderfer Sept. 16, 1947 2,435,543 Johnson Feb. 3, 1948 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 512,578 Great Britain Sept. 20, 1939 513,551 Great Britain Oct. 16, 1939 

